The Unvarnished Truth

Much has been made about the hard times that performing arts organizations are going through in the wake of September 11, 2001, and the nagging recession that has been exascerbated by these events. Of course, it is precisely times like this in which the theatre is critical to our survival.

What could be a better antidote for a president trying to distract us from a stolen election, a faltering economy, and his own criminal actions than a good farce? And that is just what Director Ed Baierlein and the talented cast and crew at the Germinal Stage are serving up with Royce Ryton's madcap The Unvarnished Truth.

Starting with a domestic squabble over who loves whom the most, a slew of ever-so-slightly deranged characters trip over themselves with one lie after another until the mayhem sucks in even the most stalwart among them. If laughter is the best medicine, this is the overdose the country needs.